Page 13 of Into The Rift

We drained our enemies. I understood that our victims didn’t suffer much, though things like that take a long time to fade from the collective memory.

The fact that we drank the blood, along with certain aspects of our appearance, like the horns and the scales, all led to the charges that we were demons. The other star systems shunned and feared us and looked on our planet as the scourge of the galaxy.

As emperor, Linnius didn’t help that reputation, and he employed a policy of savage aggression against neighboring planets for almost any offense.

This was far from my first trip into space, but I hoped it might be my last. I’d never cared for it. Not the travel, which was inconvenient and cramped, nor the food, which was almost always poorly prepared, nor the company of the men onboard, which left a great deal to be desired. I felt sure the feeling was mutual, though none of them would dare let it show.

I wondered sometimes why Linnius was so intent on sending me so often into the rift. Then again it was no secret to anyone that he wanted me out of his way, because I was far too popular with the High Council. Not to mention his principal wife, Melanius, who was one of several lovers I had, both male and female.

That may have had more than a little to do with how often Linnius sent me on these perilous missions. This would be my third time traversing the rift, and this time the High Council was expecting me to bring them back a hostage. Wormholes were notoriously unstable, and if this Colonel Tariq managed to follow us inside, he could accidentally cause it to collapse, which could be catastrophic to all concerned. There wouldn’t be any way for any of us to get back or even survive for long just floating around in the rift.

Unfortunately, I was embroiled in a standoff with Tariq. These hostages, if I managed to escape with them, were meant to join the ranks of Linnius’s concubines, both as a warning and an insult to the powerful king who lived and ruled over most of the planets in C390. His name was Davos, and I knew Linnius feared him, though he’d never admit it.

Once Linnius saw Rakkur, who was extremely beautiful, or the tiny, exquisite Jago, for that matter, he’d want one or perhaps both of them as his concubines. Prince Rakkur was more classically beautiful, but Jago was much more exotic. More annoying as well, but sometimes you had to take the bad along with the good. He had a look that was a bit androgenous, which appealed to me greatly, and in Linnius’s place, I had to admit I would have chosen him.

I think it was the hair. Then again, his face was very pretty too. His body was sweet as well. Besides, he was practically a volunteer. He had begged me to let Rakkur go and keep him as the hostage. It seemed a shame to disappoint him.

****

Jago

I jumped to my feet when the door opened after Rakkur’s interview with Lord Dominiko, just in time to catch his arm and steady him as the guards shoved him inside.

“Are you all right?”

He nodded. “No one has tried to hurt me yet—unlike you, I might add.” He gently touched my cheek, which had been throbbing since my little altercation out in the corridor with Dominiko’s guards. One of them had elbowed me in the face—and the ribs, and my stomach—as they stripped off my robe and threw me on the floor to search me. I already had bruises coming up on my skin.

“It’s nothing. I knifed one of the guards with a dagger I had strapped to the inside of my thigh. They missed it when they searched me.”

“Nothing? And what do you mean, you knifed a guard? Gods, Jago, you’ll get yourself killed. These people are barbarians. Did you notice the horns on all of them? Especially the big ones on Lord Dominiko?”

“Hard to miss. Yeah, I noticed. And the scales too. Do you think they could be part dragon?

“Dragons are only in fairy tales. Dominiko’s handsome, don’t get me wrong, but he’s also terrifying, so please don’t get on his bad side. I have news though—Tariq’s ship has come alongside us.”

“Will they attack?”

“Not with us here on the ship, I think. Not yet anyway. I think that would be a last resort. One of Dominiko’s men said they wanted an open channel. I believe they’ll try to negotiate for our release first.”

Jago shook his head. “Tariq won’t do that. Tygerians don’t negotiate with terrorists. I don’t think Lord Dominiko will either.”

“Not usually, no. But the Pton may threaten us, and if they do, then I know Tariq will threaten them right back. He has an awful temper. Be prepared, though. We might get to leave soon. Tariq can be persuasive.”

“Look, Rakkur, I’ve been thinking about it. In fact, I already mentioned this to Lord Dominiko. Maybe they’ll agree to let just you go and just keep me as their hostage.”

“What? No. Don’t be ridiculous. It’s out of the question.”

“You have to think of the baby. I’m less trouble to them in that regard. And I’m still a prince, though not as close to the throne as you.”

“I’m hardly close myself, but I still outrank you, and I’m telling you it’s not going to happen. And I can assure you Davos and Blake will be terribly distraught at the idea of you being held hostage. They’ll never allow it. I can’t even imagine what Anarr and Renard would say. No, just get that idea right out of your head.”

“Dominiko seemed to dismiss it too, but I still think it may turn out to be an option.”

“No, you’re wrong. It’s out of the question.”

“We’ll see, I guess. But I mean, what’s the alternative?”

“He could let us both go. Or more likely, they could try to run from Tariq. This ship is smaller and faster. They could slip into the rift and be gone, taking both of us with them.”

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